National A.A. Technology Workshop

2019 FAQ

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About the Workshop

Q: As a first time attendee, what should I know first?

  • This is a Technology Workshop. We encourage you to use technology as a means of communication during and after the Workshop sessions. Bring your smartphones, tablets, and laptops! We will use them during the Workshop.
  • All sessions are being recorded with the intention of being distributed over the Internet (behind a login). Please respect anonymity. All Workshop attendees will receive this content for free. But please support the taper by browsing their other recordings.
  • Most information is available on our mobile application. Additional information can be found on our website. 
  • If you need help at any time, ask a question in our slack channel. And if you’re old school, ask one of the host committee volunteers who is wearing a yellow badge.
  • Read the next Q&A about what’s different this year, this applies to you too!

Q: As a returning attendee, what’s different this year?

  • We have a theme for this year’s workshop. We’ve never had a theme before. The theme of this year’s Workshop is Connection. We’ve attempted to tie this into many presentations.
  • We have a couple of remote presentations with people joining us from around the world! We’ve never had remote presentations.
  • We don’t have a single Saturday night speaker. We will have 3 featured speakers sharing for 10 minutes each on Technology, followed by several (6?) random speakers pulled from a hat. We previously had a single Saturday night speaker.
  • We are using slack and the shared Workshop Report in a more organized way than we ever have before.
  • Read the first time attendee Q&A above, this applies to you too!
  • In addition to the free audio recordings, we are experimenting with recording a few of our own presentations (computer output and audio, no video of the presenters or room). If this goes well this content will be provided in the same manner as our audio content. 

Q: Is it ok to have my computer or phone open during the sessions?

  • Yes. This is a Technology Workshop. We are using technology in ways we have never done before — to connect, communicate, and share. We understand that multitasking can make people less productive and less present. There is always a balance to this. Use slack (and the shared Workshop report document) during sessions to take notes. Use slack to ask questions. Use the mobile application between sessions to to see what’s happening next.

Q: Where’s the hospitality room?

  • The Hospitality room is on the main floor in Meeting Room 5. The Hospitality room will be open from 7am until midnight.

Q: What is slack?

  • Slack is a third party chat application that allows closed communications between members. NAATW is not affiliated with slack nor do we endorse it.

Q: How do I connect to slack?

  • Download the slack application on your device (mobile, tablet, or computer). Once connected to the NAATW organization, join the #naatw-2019 channel and the #naatw-2019-report channels.
  • Use the slack channel during sessions to have a conversation with other Workshop participants. Use the primary #naatw-2019 slack channel during sessions to ask questions. During some sessions, you will be able to tag your questions with the session facilitator’s name, for example, mine is @dougg. The session facilitator will redirect these questions to the speaker.

Q: How do I get the Workshop Report?

  • We do not create a Workshop Report. Please collaborate with other attendees to create a report together. Details on how to collaborate are found in the #naatw-2019-report slack channel.
  • We understand that there are anonymity concerns with the use of such Google documents. So if you do not wish to participate in the collaboration, please post comments in the slack channel and ask someone to add it to the report.
  • We will generate a PDF of the document for distribution to all registered participants approximately one week after the Conference.

Q: How do I get the Audio Recordings?

  • Recordings will be made available through our website behind a login. 
  • We will invite every registered user to the website sometime soon, if we have not already done so. It is through the website with this login that you will have access to audio recordings.
  • We expect that these will be available soon after the Workshop, possibly within the week. 
  • Read the Q&A above about anonymity.

Q: What are the Presentation Recordings?

  • The presentation recordings are computer output (what you see on the projector) along with the room audio.
  • Only presentations with slide decks will be recorded this way, and not all of them. Panels will not be recorded this way. BoFs will not be recorded this way. We will still have audio recordings of all sessions (except for BoFs).
  • We are recording using the same equipment that gamers use to record their computer during live streaming. This equipment sites between the computer and the projector.
  • If this goes well this content will be provided in the same manner as our audio content.

Q: How do I get the mobile application?

  • The application is only available to Workshop attendees only. Please visit the registration desk for instructions or to scan the QR code.

Q: What’s new about the website?

  • We launched a new website for this Conference. The website has information about NAATW, this FAQ, and information about past and future Workshops.
  • We will invite every registered user to the website sometime soon, if we have not already. You will have access to additional website content as a Workshop attendee. 
  • The website will always be a living, evolving site. If you see incorrect content or wish to see additional content, please help us with constructive comments or volunteer hours, and please be gentle, it was built by volunteers.

Q: How do I share on social media?

  • Don’t share on social media. This was a trick question.
  • While we wish not to cause any controversy, we are pushing the limits (and in some cases breaking them). We fully support the idea of not using Facebook or Twitter for AA communications. 
  • We wish we didn’t use Google for shared documents too and we hope to have a better solution by next year. 

Q: You are recording, what about anonymity?

  • We will read this statement at the beginning of every meeting: “Please help us honor our Tradition of Anonymity by using first names only. We remind you especially to do so when speaking from the floor microphone during all question and answer periods. Should you hear a full name during this session, please write down the time and room where this occurred and share this with the taper immediately after the session or even better drop this information in the Workshop slack channel.”
  • When we release the audio to Workshop attendees behind a login, do not distribute it to others. And while you are listening to this content, should you have anonymity concerns, please contact us info@naatw.org immediately so we can scrub the content.

Q: Where and when do we eat?

  • Most meals are included with the Workshop registration. See your schedule for meal times. Meals will be served from the Hospitality room (Meeting Room 5) located on the main floor. We are having Friday dinner, Saturday lunch and Saturday dinner together.
  • Hotel guests also have free breakfast served in the Heartland Cafe.

Q: Should I pay for meals?

  • Not necessary, Friday dinner, Saturday lunch, and Saturday dinner are included with the Workshop registration.
  • However, while your Workshop registration pays for some of the cost of our meals, quite a bit is being provided through the generous hospitality of the local AA community. Please contribute to the 7th Tradition basket at whatever level you think is appropriate.

Q: What’s happening on Sunday?

  • For starters, the NAATW Chair will share our experience, strength, and hope in the form of our annual report.
  • We’ll announce known plans for 2020 and here bids for 2021.
  • We’ll elect next year’s officers.
  • We’ll have a closing session in the final hour where we celebrate this year’s Workshop, exchange information on how to stay connected, and share on what went well and what can be improved upon. 

Q: What’s the dress for the Workshop?

  • Wear what you would normally wear to an AA meeting. Most people will be in jeans and a T-shirt, some in shorts, some in Business or Business casual.

Q: There’s a survey?

About the Organization

These questions are about the Organization

Q: What is TIAA? How are NAATW and TIAA related?

  • TIAA is the Technology in AA online Forums. TIAA was started after our second Conference by members who attended the Conference.
  • It is a different organization from NAATW. Yet we are closely related. Our membership overlaps.
  • We have formed a sub committee that is in active discussions on how the two organizations can best serve our membership and work with each other.

Q: Who is a member of NAATW?

  • You are!
  • The only requirement to be a voting member of NAATW is to be present at our annual members meeting on Sunday.

Q: How do I get involved in service within NAATW?

  • Attend the members meeting on Sunday (that goes without saying).
  • Stand for one of the 3 open Steering Committee positions.
  • Send an email to info@naatw.org and tell us that you’d like to help. Or just talk to any Steering Committee member.
  • We have a unique opportunity this year. The 2020 International AA Conference in Detroit is a big stage. At the 2015 International Conference in Atlanta, NAATW was only one year old. We are now six years old, have more years of experience, and plan to have a hospitality room. 2020 should be our biggest Workshop ever and we need your help.

Q: How do I bid to host a future Workshop?

  • We try to move the Workshop around geographically. Ideally we’d follow a schedule that goes somewhere in the middle of the country every other year and to each coast every fourth year. In practicality, we go wherever someone is willing to host.
  • Talk to any Steering Committee Member to let us know your intention, or just send an email to chair@naatw.org.
  • We have plans for 2020 that will be announced on Sunday morning.
  • We are accepting bids for 2021 and asking you to plan for 2022. If you have something ready to share already, you can present this at our Sunday morning meeting. We currently no of no 2021 or 2022 bids.